Bobcat Nation:

We will be completing the state Math assessments during the morning on Tuesday and Wednesday. It is important for the students to be in school on time during the assessments. After the assessments are completed each day, we will transition into a two-hour delayed arrival schedule to get the students into as many of their regular classes as possible. Students will need their charged laptops and are encouraged to bring their own wired headphones for the assessments. This will increase their comfort with the headphones, as well as reduce items that need to be shared. Cell phones and smart watches must be turned off and stored in a designated location during testing.

We would like to invite the NMS school community to attend our upcoming Orchestra concert on Tuesday, May 21st in the Mary Harrison Center at 8:00 pm.

Reminder - CCPS schools are closed on Friday, 5/24 and Monday, 5/27.

Have a great week!

https://twitter.com/NorthernMSCCPS

Thank you to everyone who came out on Friday evening to support our Staff vs Students basketball game. This is always a fun event and we were excited to continue this annual tradition which raises funds for worthy causes. This year, we raised more than $1,400 for Relay For Life and FBLA. Thank you to our staff and students who participated in the game! Thank you also to our guest player, CCPS Superintendent Dr. Townsel, and guest referee, President of the Board of Education, Mr. Antoine White. Great job Bobcats!

On Friday, our 6th grade students participated in an assembly promoting healthy life choices. Thank you to No Puff Daddy for discussing the dangers of vaping/smoking in a fun, interactive way. Our students had a great time! Thank you to the Calvert County Health Department for organizing and funding the program.

Congratulations to the 2023-2024 year-long Stock Market Game Regional Champions! Elias Pande, Elliot Musser, Chase Snyder, Fitz Human, and Nate Kim were recognized at last week's Maryland Council on Economic Education awards. Thank you to Dr. Price, our GATE Liaison, for facilitating this opportunity!

Be sure to order your 2023-24 NMS Yearbook! Yearbooks are sold online at:

https://link.entourageyearbooks.com/my/NMS2023-24

Yearbooks are currently on sale for $35.00.

If you have any yearbook questions, please contact Mrs. McGuire at mcguireta@calvertnet.k12.md.us.

CCPS Parents and Guardians - Your feedback matters! Please take the time to complete the 2024 CCPS End of the Year Survey. This survey allows you to provide feedback as a parent about your experience with the climate and culture of our schools. Both district and school staff will review this survey Information to inform our policies and procedures in creating a positive learning environment for all students.

If you have children at multiple schools, please complete this survey as many times as needed so that you complete one survey per school. For example, if you have three children who attend two schools, please complete this survey twice, one time for each school. Please do your best to isolate your responses by only thinking about your experiences with one school as you complete the survey the first time. When you return, focus your responses on your experiences at the other school.

Parent survey link

English: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WFWV5FZ

Spanish: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WFWV5FZ?lang=es

We are excited to share dates that have been scheduled for 8th grade end-of-year activities. We wanted to give 8th grade families a heads up for your calendars. Attached is a letter with additional information about these activities for 8th grade families.

• 8th Grade Dance sponsored by the NMS PTO – Friday, June 7th – 6:00 – 8:00 pm
• 8th Grade Picnic sponsored by the NMS PTO – Monday, June 10th – last two hours of the school day
• 8th Grade Awards Assembly – Monday, June 10th – 6:00 pm at the Mary Harrison Center

Looking to celebrate your 8th grader? PTO is sponsoring a fundraiser through which you can purchase a Yard Card celebrating your child. Purchases can be made online at https://calvertyardcards.com/product/yard-sign-fundraiser/ until May 28th. Yard Cards which are purchased will be available for pick-up until June 2nd at the Calvert Yard Cards office at 1921 Skinners Turn Road in Owings.

For the past 5-6 years I have put together the 8th grade slideshow that gets shown at the 8th grade awards assembly at the end of the year. I am looking for pictures on the first day of 6th and 8th grade, as well as any field trips, dances, festivals, school related activities over the past 3 years of their middle school career that your student has been a part of. I love individual pictures, but group shots are even better, the more the merrier. Please send pictures to martusc@calvertnet.k12.md.us. I appreciate all your support and can't wait to see what you send me.

Please get your pictures to me no later than Friday, May 17th. This will give me enough time to finalize and double check I have every student in the slideshow.

Hello, my name is Rachel Van Vliet and I'm the Lead Teacher for Tutoring for the 2023-2024 School Year. This year, tutoring is available on Thursdays from 3:20 to 4:30pm. Students may bring their own snack, if desired. Please complete the digital permission slip below permitting your child to stay after school. Students must be signed out by a parent/guardian at 4:30pm inside the Media Center.

Permission Slip: https://forms.office.com/r/SRUjYDZvSm

We look forward to helping your child strive to improve their academic achievement!

Congratulations to the NMS Baseball team on their semifinal playoff win last week! They are off to the county championship game this week.

Playoff Schedule Update

• Boys and Girls Track - Championship Meet - Monday 5/20 - CHS - 4:00
• Baseball - Championship Game vs WHMS - tentatively scheduled for Wednesday 5/22 at CHS - 4:00

PTO is a great way to be involved in supporting our students, staff, and school! Click the link to join! https://my.cheddarup.com/c/pto-membership-2023-2024

Spirit Wear! NMS Bobcats Socks are now available, in 2 designs! Striped or Solid! Place your order on the links below, socks will be delivered to students during advisory. Cash or check made payable to NMS PTO.

• Striped: https://nms-bobcats-socks.cheddarup.com
• Solid: https://nms-striped-bobcats-socks-copy.cheddarup.com

For information about family events and youth activities taking place in our community, visit calvertnet.k12.md.us/flyers.

Please note: These events and activities are not sponsored by the Calvert County Board of Education or Calvert County Public Schools. We provide equal opportunities to outside agencies to distribute materials that offer opportunities to students and/or their parents, but that permission should not be considered a recommendation or endorsement by the school district.

Share your talents at the Juneteenth Community Day Talent Show on June 15 at the Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum in St. Leonard, Maryland! The event will be held from 11am to 5pm, and is sponsored by sponsored by NAACP of Calvert County and Community Partners. Sign up directly at https://form.jotform.com/240866392358164. Cash prizes for each age group ranging from $150-500!

Contractors are paid $24.04 an hour/8 hours per day for a brand-new bus driver. There are increases for those individuals with more verified school bus driving experience starting at year 4, 9, 14, 19 and 24. Drivers work for independent school bus contractors throughout Calvert County. The contractors hire drivers to work on daily bus routes, or as substitutes, or to drive field trips and sports teams.

The Transportation Department provides training, free of charge, for qualified candidates to become school bus drivers. This is a terrific opportunity to work close to home and to serve the children and schools in our community.

For more information about raining, requirements, and an application, go to the CCPS Transportation page at https://www.calvertnet.k12.md.us/departments/transportation.

Please contact Chuck Baker, Driver Instructor, @ 443-550-8778 or bakerc@calvertnet.k12.md.us for details on the free training process or with questions. Classes are typically held twice a month at the Career & Technology Academy, 331 Dorsey Rd., Prince Frederick, MD 20678

CCPS has posted the Reopening Plan for schools on the system website at https://www.calvertnet.k12.md.us/district-information/reopening-plan. Please review this document for more information about procedures that will be in place to help provide a safe and healthy learning environment for students and staff.

In addition to hard copy notes, parents can send notes for student absences to Ms. Contee in the counseling office via email at conteeb@calvertnet.k12.md.us.

It is important for students to arrive at school between 7:50 and 8:00 AM. Car-riders that arrive after 8:00 AM are considered tardy and have to sign-in at the main office before going to 1st period.

It is important for students to arrive at school between 7:50 and 8:00 AM. Car-riders that arrive after 8:00 AM are considered tardy. The following steps are in place when a student arrives repeatedly late to school:

• 4 days tardy in one marking period, the NMS Attendance Team will talk to the student about the need to be at school on time and discuss solutions with the student.
• 6 days tardy in one marking period, the NMS Attendance Team will call the parents or guardians to discuss solutions.
• 8 days tardy in one marking period, the student will have lunch detention each day they arrive after 8 AM.

If tardiness is something your child is struggling with in the morning, here are some suggestions to help them get to school on time:

• Pack lunch (if necessary), lay out outfit for the morning and pack book bag before going to bed at night.
• Talk to the student about they need to do in the morning (take shower, get dressed, eat breakfast, drive time, etc.), and how long each activity will take, then have them set their alarm for enough time to get all activities completed to get to school before 8 AM.
• Students can be dropped off at 7:50, so aim for 7:50 instead of 8 AM as your arrival time.
• If tardiness continues, have student take their assigned bus to school instead of being a car-rider.

https://calvertnet.nutrislice.com/

To provide parents/guardians with a better user experience, the CCPS Child Nutrition Program has transitioned from www.MySchoolBucks.com to https://LinqConnect.com for its online meal management system.

Student purchases and account balances may be monitored by signing up online for a LINQ Connect account at https://LinqConnect.com. There is no fee to sign up for an account. From this one site, parents/guardians will be able to apply for meal benefits (no registration required) and to register their student(s) if they wish to monitor Café purchases, view balances, set low balance reminders and make deposits. In addition, parents/guardians will also now have the ability to transfer funds between their student accounts and may choose to place spending limits/purchasing maximums on these accounts. Online deposits will still incur a fee of $1.60, but that fee will now include all deposits made during a single transaction.

Please note that all previous account balances automatically transferred into the new system, however, any special notes regarding snack/á la carte purchases and limits did not and will need to be re-entered vis https://LinqConnect.com or by contacting the Child Nutrition Office at 443.550.8680.

It’s not too late! Apply today for free and reduced-price meal benefits!

Some students may qualify for free or reduced-price meals. A new application must be submitted each school year. Eligibility is typically determined by household size and income. To see if your household qualifies, please complete, and submit one meal benefit application per household. Applications may be completed online at https://LinqConnect.com. Applications are available in many languages on the LinqConnect site but are also available on the USDA’s website at http://www.fns.usda.gov/school-meals/translated-applications.

More information is also available on the CCPS website at Departments – Child Nutrition or at https://www.calvertnet.k12.md.us/departments/child-nutrition.

Student have been provided with a laptop and charger by Calvert County Public Schools. 8th graders will continue to utilize the laptop this school year that has been previously issued to them and was taken home over the summer. 6th grade and 7th grade students have received new laptops.

It is important for students to charge their laptops overnight and bring them to school each day. It is also important that students take care of their device and charger. While normal wear and tear is acceptable and expected, intentional damage or damage caused by neglect is not covered under the accidental warranty. These types of damages require an investigation by school administration and may result in a student obligation for the repair costs. We would like to avoid parents being responsible for these costs, as they could hundreds of dollars depending on the damage. Due to an increase in devices needing repair, we are running low on loaner laptops. Loaner laptops will not be available for those who leave them at home so it is important that students remember to bring them charged and ready for the school day.

Learning Expectations with Devices

• CCPS/CHS device brought to school every day – fully charged before school begins.
• Used as the official electronic device in all classrooms
• Use CCPS Office 365 account to save assignments, projects, notes

Device Safety:

• Accounts, usernames and/or passwords are never to be shared with another student/individual
• Laptop devices should never be loaned to another student/individual
• Personal, identifiable information should never be posted on the internet
• Never leave devices unattended

Device Care:

• No decorations, stickers, drawing or writing on the device
• No eating or drinking near the device
• Do not expose the device to extreme heat, cold or rain
• Clean with a dry soft cloth only
• Do not drop or slam the device on any surface
• Do not places papers or other objects between the keyboard and screen and close shut/use as a folder

Schoology accounts for parents are view only accounts. They were created for parents who have an email address in Home Access Center (HAC). For more information about how to access your Schoology parent account click: https://www.calvertnet.k12.md.us/departments/instruction/programs/digital-learning/schoology-for-parents

If students have questions about their device (laptop/computer), they can get help from a member of the CCPS IT team at helpdesk@calvertnet.k12.md.us or call 443-550-8146. Students needing assistance can also drop off their laptop in the main office and fill out a paper Help Desk ticket.

Supports are available on the CCPS website using the Technology Support link below. This resource provides links to submit help desk tickets, frequently asked questions, and other resources that can be used to solve issues.

https://calvertnet.zendesk.com/hc/en-us

Here Comes the Bus (HCTB) is an app with tracking features for the bus(es) your child(ren) is assigned to ride. They include

• Showing the real-time location of your child's bus on a map
• Scheduled and actual arrival times at home and school for bus routes
• Push and email notifications when the bus is near

Click this link for more information on getting the app - https://www.calvertnet.k12.md.us/departments/transportation/bus-status/here-comes-the-bus

To create an account, you will need to know your child's ID number and the school district activation code 87557.

Calvert County Public Schools uses Raptor for visitors and volunteers to sign in and sign out. Volunteers must apply annually to be an approved volunteer. All volunteers will need to review the volunteer handbook and watch the volunteer training video before completing and Online Volunteer Application. Volunteers must be approved before they may begin service as a volunteer in any school buildings.

CCPS Online Volunteer Application & Process: https://www.calvertnet.k12.md.us/departments/human-resources/become-a-volunteer